PITTSBURGH —Duquesne coach Ron Everhart had a play set up with his team down by one point with 39 seconds to go, but he trashed it like a junk e-mail after he saw Dayton’s defensive alignment.

Agile post player Damian Saunders is a match-up problem for Atlantic 10 centers, and Everhart believed the Dukes could exploit 6-foot-10 Kurt Huelsman

“We were surprised (Chris) Wright wasn’t at the 5,” Everhart said. “When we saw Huelsman was on Damian, we said not to run the play at all. Find Damian in the middle of the floor and get out of his way.”

Saunders said his instructions were clear: “Coach told me to take him. I had been taking him all day.”

Saunders blew around Huelsman for an easy drive with 25 seconds left, and Duquesne withstood two potential game-winning shots from UD to hang on for a 73-71 win Sunday, Feb. 21.

“We knew it was coming,” Huelsman said. “I did all I could, but he still scored the basket.”

Coach Brian Gregory said he didn’t consider going with a smaller defender on the 6-8 junior, who had 16 of his 20 points in the second half.

“If you take a look, I’d say out of those 16 points he scored, 10 of them were in transition. It has nothing to do with the match-up,” Gregory said.

“We’ve got to get better help, though. We had too many guys hugging their man.”

Two tries for win

The Flyers came up empty on two possessions in the final 25 seconds. Chris Johnson missed an open 3-pointer that would have given UD a two-point lead. And after the Dukes made a free throw, Johnson missed again from 18 feet.

Gregory felt the Flyers couldn’t have asked for much more.

“We got a wide open shot for your best 3-point shooter,” Gregory said. “The other one at the end, we got a pretty good look for C.J. We said if we penetrate, they’re all going to all swarm around the ball, so kick it out. If you have an opportunity to get a 3, it’s a quality shot.”

Wright hits 1,000

Chris Wright needed 12 points to become the 42nd player at UD to hit 1,000 in a career, and he seemed like he might get there before the first media timeout.

He scored UD’s first 11 points in the opening 4:50, and he reached the plateau, fittingly, with a dunk on the final possession of the first half. He finished with 15.

“My mom talked to me about it earlier in the week,” Wright said. “I didn’t even realize it. I didn’t even think about it coming into the game.

“It just shows all the work I’ve put in over the years. To not even be able to play a full freshman year (he missed 19 games with a fractured ankle), it’s a good accomplishment. But you’ve just got to keep moving. It ain’t over.”

Senior guard Marcus Johnson hit the milestone earlier this season.

Tidbits

• UD sophomore Luke Fabrizius (back spasms) saw action for the first time in five games. He was 0-for-2 while playing six minutes.

• Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, who was just inducted into the pro football Hall of Fame, was introduced during a break in the first half and received a rousing ovation.

• The UD-Temple game was originally scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, but has been moved to 6:30 to accommodate TV. It’s a CBS College Sports regional broadcast being picked up by WHIO (Channel 7).

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2125 or dharris @DaytonDailyNews.com.